WASHINGTON — Only one representative from Washington state voted against creating an independent commission to investigate the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, while Idaho representatives were split on the vote.
Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-WA, and Russ Fulcher, R-ID, both voted against the investigative commission.
Democrats say an independent investigation is crucial to reckoning what happened that day, when a violent mob of Trump's supporters smashed into the Capitol to try and overturn President Joe Biden's victory. Modeled after the investigation into the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the legislation would establish an independent, 10-member commission that would make recommendations by the end of the year for securing the Capitol and preventing another insurrection. It passed the House 252-175.
But top Republicans in Congress are working to stop it. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday morning that he will oppose the legislation, joining with House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy, who came out against it Tuesday. Both men claimed the bill was partisan, even though membership of the proposed commission would be evenly split between the parties.
The January insurrection has become an increasingly fraught topic for Republicans, with a growing number in the party downplaying the severity of the worst attack on the Capitol in more than 200 years. While most Republicans voted against forming the commission, only a few spoke on the floor against it.
Fellow Washington Republican Representatives Dan Newhouse and Jaime Herrera Beutler both voted in favor of the commission. Only 35 Republican representatives submitted a yes vote. In Idaho, Republican Mike Simpson voted in favor of the investigative commission.
McMorris Rodgers previously voted against impeaching former President Donald Trump following the insurrection. A month after the attack, she told KREM 2’s Whitney Ward she didn’t think the former president incited the riot.
“He didn't say...’Go storm the capitol,’” McMorris Rodgers said. “He didn’t give them the direction to do that.”
RELATED: WATCH: Rep. McMorris Rodgers says Trump didn't give rioters 'direction' to storm U.S. Capitol
KREM 2 reached out McMorris Rodgers' office to request an interview about her vote but the congresswoman was unavailable. Her office provided the following statement in response:
“The events that took place in our nation’s capital on January 6th were disgraceful and un-American. The criminals who breached and defaced our Capitol Building not only put people’s lives in danger, but they threatened the very values we hold dear as Americans. Thanks to the Department of Justice – and the incredible work of state and local law enforcement – 445 people responsible for this assault have been arrested. More arrests are expected in the coming weeks and months, and I fully support prosecuting every individual who acted illegally to the fullest extent of the law.
Unfortunately, the commission established in H.R. 3233 could impede the ongoing investigation of these events and delay the prosecution of those responsible by unnecessarily duplicating efforts. The bill also fails to provide an avenue for examining the violence that swept across the nation last summer as rioters looted and burned to the ground cities like Seattle and Portland, events that cannot be ignored as we assess the factors that led to an attack on our democracy.
Instead, we must unite as Americans to condemn all violence and strive to hold accountable those who commit these shameful acts. We are Americans, and we are better than this. I pray that we can come together as ‘one nation under God’ and move forward to build a brighter future.”
The legislation now heads to the Senate, where Majority Leader Chuck Schumer vowed to force a vote on the bill.